Trauma Counselling

Help to overcome adult or childhood trauma

Is is important to get help because trauma changes people. It disconnects them from their relationships. Traumatised people lose their trust in others, their hope, and their faith in the future. They can suffer from hypervigilance, emotional flashbacks, shame, sleep disturbances, emotional instability (sadness, anger, anxiety and depression), self harming (skin picking), suicidal ideations, and many other symptoms. Trauma reactions do not improve with time. Traumatic memories are not processed in the brain as past - so they are constantly re-experienced in the present. The good news is that trauma can be treated! Trauma is not a life sentence. I can offer you the tools and techniques that will help you to heal. Call now to schedule a session.

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Trauma Therapy

How does trauma treatment, or PTSD counselling work?

If you have not been diagnosed with PTSD or cPTSD you may just be wondering why you are experiencing a variety of unpleasant symptoms and are struggling to maintain your close relationships. We can discuss how you are feeling and we can begin treating the trauma. If you have been diagnosed, you will be under the care of your GP, and possibly a Psychiatrist. You may have been prescribed medication to help wit the symptoms. It is often very helpful to see a trauma counsellor as well.

My trauma treatment begins with clients learning how trauma affects the brain. Psychoeducation is very important so you understand exactly what is happening in your body to make you feel constantly on the alert and over-adrenalized. Then you need to learn to switch this reaction off using bio-feedback techniques. Different clients find different techniques suit them best, so I will help you find the methods that work for you. The techniques include - somatic therapy, simple breathing techniques, grounding exercises, and mindfulness techniques. Mindfulness based CBT can be very useful at this point. During this time it is very important not to discuss the traumatic incident in graphic detail. People who have experienced trauma are often compelled to 'blurt' out what exactly happened to them, but talking about the trauma before they have control over their autonomic nervous system responses can retraumatise. Initially, my trauma therapy to focuses on psychoeducation about trauma and the nervous system. This gives my clients time to develop their biofeedback techniques and a sense of safety and control.

Once my client is stabilised, the trauma counselling can take a number of different paths. Triggers can be identified in the safety of the counselling relationship, and my client's window of tolerance to their discuss their trauma and flashback triggers can be increased, while the intensity of their reactions to the flashbacks is decreased. The problem with traumatic memories and emotional flashbacks is that they feel real in the here and now - no matter how long ago the initial trauma occurred. Nightmares and flashbacks can be managed with Imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT). The narrative of the memory can also be changed. Once the traumatic memory is less highly charged it can be processed and filed away in the brain as a 'past' event. When the memory has filed in the brain's 'past' memory store, the symptoms it has been causing in the present can stop.

I have experienced trauma myself (both as a child, and as an adult). So, I am a great advocate for trauma treatment because I know exactly what a wonderful thing it is to be able again to look forward to a future with optimism. I got my faith, hope, and joy back. Please, do get in touch if you would like me to help you. We all deserve a full, connected, happy and successful life.